An International Crew

Language Arts and Social Studies Activity

Students learn about cooperation by planning an international project.

WHAT YOU NEED

Reference materials on international efforts at community

WHAT TO DO

Initiate a discussion about international communities by mentioning such
efforts as the Mir space station, scientific research stations in Antarctica, and the Olympic movment. Have students research these temporary, international communities and others they may think of. Tell them to be prepared to explain what conclusions they draw from each experience. Suggest
that they consider such questions as these:

What
countries were involved?

What did you learn from reading about this community?

What did all the communities have in common? How were they different?

Did one country play a more important role than
others? How did that affect the outcome?

Why did this experience in international cooperation work (or not work)?

Based on what you read, what would you avoid doing if you were planning a
similar effort? What would you make sure you did do?

Divide students into cooperative groups. Tell the class that each group is
going to use what they have learned to plan an international community that
will engage in an project to benefit all the countries involved and perhaps the
whole world. Their planning should lead to a written statement describing the
project and what it hopes to accomplish.

Have students present their projects orally. Initiate a follow-up discussion
on what they learned about cooperation in the process of planning.

TEACHING OPTIONS

Have students choose one of the international communities they researched and
put themselves in the place of one of its members. Have them write several
journal entries to describe the experience of living and working with people
from other countries.

Students can use reference sources to find an international political body or
volunteer organization that might be interested in the project they have
outlined. Have them compose a letter in which they outline their ideas.

Ask students to use what they've learned about international cooperation to
draw up a list of guidelines for cooperation in communities closer to home,
such as camps, clubs, and schoolrooms.